Love and Consequence
by Jinubean
Summary: Bug and Lily go to a regular suburban neighborhood to notify the next of kin but they find themselves in the midst of a hostage situation! It's up to Matt, Jeffery and Garret to get them out! post Mysterious Ways, spoiler warning.
1. Prologue

**Love and Consequence**

**Prologue**

_--Lily--_

I was angry at him. No, absolutely furious. The words were on the tip of my tongue; the ones banishing him from my life forever. I had to turn away, choking down my bitter emotions, so that I wouldn't have to face him. I needed to keep myself in check as I listened to his pathetic attempts at an apology.

But my conversation with Garret was in the front of my mind. As if I were driving and I couldn't help but to look into the headlights of oncoming cars. I recalled how I had said I felt great while I was with him. I hesitated, and then just great, not fantastic, not happy, not complete; great.

I could feel my heart sink when he asked how I felt when Jeffery wasn't around. I neglected to answer because the possibility seemed almost unbearable.

I suppose that was my reasoning for saying yes.

_--Bug--_

Why did she have to say yes?

I have wracked my brain for weeks trying to figure out what she sees in this guy. I need a suitable explanation that she isn't providing. Every time I think of it, I come up empty handed.

I suppose love may have something to do with marriage, but the love I've held for her for so long just doesn't seem to cut it. Money perhaps? Every woman needs security in her life I suppose even one as spectacular as Lily worries about her financial future. I like to think I make a decent living while working at the morgue. So ,what does he have that I don't? Is he more interesting that I am? Sweeter? Kinder? I Doubt it. I have cherished her and held her in the highest regard since the moment I met her.

So why then, did she fall for that geek instead of this one?

_--Lily--_

I saw him seeing me and for a moment or two I felt something different. I was overcome by pity and a sadness I could not place. In the pit of my stomach, I felt something more than the man who held me so tightly could ever make me feel. A nameless emotion.

Then I wondered why, moments after agreeing to marry one man, I wondered how another was going to take the news.


	2. Chapter 1

If can help me find a better title, please tell me, I've struggled with it! Thanks for your interest! Enjoy!**

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**Chapter One**

"We've discussed an autumn wedding—No, personally I would rather have something in the late spring or early summer, but autumn is his favorite time of year and he's got me convinced," there was another, longer pause as Lily switched the phone receiver to her other ear and started twirling her hair with her pencil. She leaned back on her chair, exasperated. "September sixteenth."

The late afternoon sun cast long shadows into her office. The golden light reflected off her various trinkets, absorbed by small cardboard boxes and newspaper littered throughout the small space. She glanced up; there was a silhouette in her door. She recognized his shape immediately, his casual stance, leaning against the threshold.

"Okay, I'll tell you what, I'll call you later—I'll be sending out invitations in a couple of months—of _course_ you'll get one! Good bye."

Hanging up the receiver, she sighed and held her head in her hands momentarily.

"You looked stressed out," Bug said, taking his weight off the door and entering the office. His hands were in his pockets.

Lily looked up to him, recovering her smile, "Preparing for a wedding is probably the most stressful thing on the planet."

"You've just got too much on your plate," Bug suggested, looking around the room he insinuated the partially packed belongings scattered around. To Lily, his eyes were always naturally doleful, like a basset hounds', however today, they seemed even more so. "Why Lily?" His voice faltered with more emotion than she expected.

She couldn't ignore the question. She hadn't expected to put in her resignation with no questions asked. A long, uncomfortable pause ensued while she thought of an appropriate way to answer him. When she couldn't think of anything she said, "I just need a change—"

Bug felt abandoned. She needed to get away from everybody at the morgue, including himself.

"I think that the time I've put in here has been the best part of my life, but it can't last forever."

He could feel his heart crush under the weight of her words. He tried to keep his head up and his breath steady and the sting of tears out of his eyes.

"I don't have anything planned yet, but I think after the wedding, I'll go on to work with children."

He couldn't imaginer her starting a family with another man.

The desk separated them but he wanted to take her into his arms and hold her there for eternity. He wanted every piece of her; it was all he ever desired. She was out of reach.

He didn't know what he was going to do without her.

She could see an internal struggle within him. She was aware of the way he felt for her and she could hardly believe she was hurting somebody so completely, so unintentionally.

"Bug, how about we go out for coffee," she suggested, "right now. I need to get out of here for a bit anyway."

Bug seemed to snap out of a trance. His head emerged from the thunder grey clouds and alighted upon her beautiful face. A grin unfolded on him.

"Yes, me too. I'll drive because before we hit the caffeine, I need to make a stop."


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

As Bug's Jeep coasted onto the street, Lily asked, "So what is the stop you have to make?"

"Oh, it's just identification. When I notified the next of kin on the phone, they refused to come to the morgue, so I arranged to make an appearance and get it over with," he said, semi-cheerfully. His job helped him to get his mind off of Lily and her future. He motioned to a manila envelope between the driver's seat and the console.

Lily nodded, saying compassionately, "Is there anything I can do?"

"Well, there's a grieving family indoors but judging from the way they didn't really want anything to do with anybody else. I'll only be gone for a few minutes. If you want, you can stay here," he suggested, worried more about inconveniencing her.

She cocked her head and raised her eyebrows, "Come on, Bug, when has a morgue employee ever 'stayed in the car'?"

Bug chuckled, "I suppose you're right." He was glad that she still referred to herself as a 'morgue employee'.

He pulled up beside the curb in a very suburban looking neighborhood. Nearly every lawn was trimmed to a precise length, children played joyously outside. Bug could hear birds chirping and the springs of a trampoline working overtime. Lily smiled at the sound of people laughing. They could smell the scent of tangy barbeque sauce marinating meat on an outdoor grill.

The grey two storey house they stood in front of was similar to all of the others on the street. The Victorian styled house was kept in good exterior condition; its white trim and dark faux shutters looked freshly painted. The windows gleamed; the hedges and lawn in the yard were kept neatly trimmed. However, it had obvious differences as well.

No children graced the driveway with basketballs or bicycles. No happy parents watched their offspring from the porch as they played. All of the curtains on the house were drawn tight. The windows and door shut, preventing the refreshing spring air from making its way inside.

Bug and Lily thought nothing of it. The family had already been informed of the death. Their grief prevented them from acting like their neighbors.

A light breeze rustled the new leaves on the tall trees bordering the property line. Lily pulled the collar up on her coat feeling a shiver down her spine. Bug used the golden knocker on the door.

While waiting for an answer, he prepared the contents of the manila envelope. They waited in silence.

And waited.

"Knock again?" Lily suggested. Her voice was almost a whisper, afraid to disturb the peacefulness of the house.

A second, louder, knock echoed through the neighborhood.

"Maybe they don't hear the knocker," she said, pressing the bell. She could hear its haunting ring inside the house.

Bug stepped out onto the lawn to view the upper level of the house. He didn't know what he expected to see, a flicker of the drapes to signify that somebody was home perhaps. The situation was odd. He had spoken to a woman on the phone hardly an hour before who told him it would be fine for him to stop by before seven.

As if their brains were on the same wavelength, Lily checked her watch, "6:15."

Bug had an odd feeling in the pit of his stomach. Furrowing his brow he said, "I don't like this." He decided to explore around the house, like a door to door salesman adamant on making a sale.

A black sheet was draped over the window on the rear door. Bug knocked on this door as Lily followed him around the corner.

"This place gives me the creeps because it's so normal."

"But it's not normal. Who drapes black sheets over back door windows?"

"People have their reasons—"

Suddenly the door opened a crack. Startled, Lily let out a yelp.

"Hello, my name is Dr. Vijay from the Massachusetts Coroner's office. This is my colleague, Ms. Lebowski. I called earlier and spoke to a woman in regards to her husband, Mr. Campbell. May we come in?"

From what little they could see of his face, they could tell he was glowering at them. He didn't say anything. He just stood there for a moment trying to see through them. It made Lily feel uncomfortable.

"It will only take a few moments for a positive identification of the deceased. And, if the family wishes, Ms. Lebowski could speak with them, she is a certified grief counselor.

"Good for her," the man spat harshly. He opened the door a little wider, but still blocking their entrance. He wore only black, a thin turtleneck sweater, casual dress pants, and polished shoes. He had a thick head of salt and pepper hair. However, it wasn't his attire that caught their attention. His face was badly scarred, perhaps from a severe burn. His once handsome features were contorted into a roadmap of horror.

After looking them over, he let them step ahead of him. They noticed the change immediately as they stepped from light into darkness. Their eyes were blinded momentarily as the door was shut and locked behind them. Lily paused for a moment, pondering the extra security.

With the drapes closed, the house was dark, like being indoors on a stormy day. They were led from the kitchen into the front portion of the house where a young blonde woman and a small boy were on a couch. The woman was slumped over the arm of the sofa, unconscious. The boy clung to her, visibly shaken and whimpering.

Lily ran to their side and took the woman's cold hand. Kneeling at her feet, she noticed that the woman's blood on her hands was also caked in her hair; she had suffered a blow to the head. "Bug!" Lily screamed.

"Not so fast," the scarred man said as Bug stepped to Lily's side. He lifted a shotgun that had been concealed behind the wall. He aimed it at Bug with a wild grin on his face. He looked like a nightmare.

Bug nearly lost his step. His head swam as he stared down the loaded weapon and he wondered what kind of situation he had brought Lily into.


	4. Reflections 1

**Reflections**

_--Garret--_

He had left the body on the table for me in preparation for an autopsy. He had gone to get the identification from the next of kin.

Determining cause of death didn't take long, I figured that finding the bastard who did it would be the real test. Matt Seely was the detective in charge. He stood, salivating for information, over the body.

The body was found in a warehouse that had been abandoned for years. He was found by a homeless woman who reported the body to the next person she saw. She disappeared before she could be questioned by police.

I deduced that the body, now identified as Mr. Jonathan Ronny Campbell, was severely beaten with an unknown weapon suffering bodily and head trauma before he was strangled with a thick braided wire found at the crime scene. His hands and arms didn't bear signs of self defense so I assumed he was caught off guard.

I wondered what he'd done to piss the murderer off.

_--Bug--_

Now I understood why the drapes were closed. Now I understood why nobody came to the front door. Now I understood that flighty feeling in my stomach, like catching yourself before falling down the stairs. Uncertainty crawled up my spine.

I was thankful that Dr. Macy was performing the autopsy. He would inform the police of the details of the murder and officers would, hopefully, arrive at the house at any moment to question the family.

The one thing I couldn't shake was how I had brought Lily into all of this. I would never forgive myself if anything happened to her.

_--Matt--_

The guy was a pro. Macy couldn't find anything on the body that tied him to any one person. I had my men combing the crime scene for anything that would give me some answers. I had two officers questioning the big wig that owned the place. And I had a desk junky digging up anything that he could out of the system. I found his criminal record, a short list of offenses like assault, robbery, a few drug charges. He had served his time for all of them. The last one, the drug charges, had been six years ago. Afterward, his name disappeared from the system.

When I was finished with what little Macy could give me, I went to the address on Campbell's license.

What I didn't expect to find there was Lily Lebowski.


	5. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

"You can call me M," the scarred man told them as he took out some yellow rope and tied them; Lily to a wooden chair brought from the kitchen, Bug to the stair's banister. Both sat with their hands behind their backs.

"She needs medical attention!" Bug struggled uncomfortably with his back to the room.

The blonde woman on the sofa was regaining consciousness. Lily watched her eyes flutter open and closed. Her legs and arms moved as if in painful sleep.

M walked up to her, his shoes thumping along the wooden floors. He aimed the butt of his shotgun at her head. The boy next to her looked, terrified, into his eyes and let out a whimper as he held his mother tighter. Lily screamed, "No! Please, don't!"

He stopped, inches from her head and changed course. His eyes gleamed furiously. Holding the barrel of the gun with his left hand he walked, with a calm demeanor, to Lily and back handed her across the face with his gnarled right. Lily let out a surprised scream. Tears formed in her eyes, clouding her vision as he took her face and pinched it, bringing it closer to his, "I give the orders around here, pretty."

Forcing back her cries, she lowered her head so that her hair shrouded her face and nodded in understanding.

Bug nearly exploded. If he had superpowers, he would have torn from his bondage and attacked that man, succeeding in eliminating him, then he would sweep Lily up and carry her to safety. But he didn't have super human powers. He was a regular doctor and he was tied to a banister while the woman he loved was smacked around. And a woman he didn't know groaned in pain. He felt helpless, blameful, and weak.

The scarred man known only as M began to methodically check the windows and doors. He ensured that they were locked tight and that the curtains were drawn. He checked outside to see that no suspicious vehicles had pulled up. "I'm leaving the room for a moment. Any mischief and I'll shoot the boy," he said confidently revealing a pistol from his side. He went into the kitchen.

"We've been in situations like this before. We'll get through this one," Lily said, her whispers barely audible.

"That's right. We just have to figure out a way to get out of this one. We can do it Lily," Bug said, instilling confidence in her. When he turned his head, he could see that she was shaking, her hands, instinctively fumbling with the knots behind her.

M's footsteps told of his return. At the same moment, there was a knock on the door. A muffled voice from outside announced whose arrival it was, "This is Detective Seely of the Boston Police Department. Open up, I just have a few questions."

M's face grew red with anger. His fists clenched, his knuckles cracked. Lily watched his eyes. One moment they were calm and the next like a raging storm, they were filled with intense anger. He stood, rooted to his spot in the center of the living room.

The knock sounded again, as well as a long bell. Bug wanted to scream out, how easy would it be? He sat feet from the front door. Surely Seely would hear him and take action. But he might harm Lily or any of the other captives in the process. He stayed silent.

Lily turned her head to the door desperately. She, the damsel in distress; he, her savior.

"Say a word and the red-head dies," M mumbled.

Bug's cell phone began ringing and vibrating on his side. He assumed it was Dr. Macy calling to tell him of his findings, calling to check his location. He wished he could answer it.

M was in his face, "What the fuck is that?" Bug wanted to wipe the spit from his face.

"My cell phone, take it if you want it."

And he did. He wrenched it from his belt and threw it toward the kitchen. He watched, satisfied, as the battery separated from the phone. He turned to Lily, "Do you have one too?"

At that moment with M's back turned, Lily saw Matt's face peer into the living room. His hands cupped over his eyes to better see into the darker area. Lily looked away despondently, as if responding to M.

"No, it's not here."

"You're not lying to me are you?" He whispered into her ear, his scratchy voice irritating her so that she flinched. She covered up her disgust by shaking her head. "You know," he said, still in her ear, "I could untie you for a while, if you're willing to do a little something for me." He touched her, his hand traveling from her hip to her breast; he let it rest there for a bit.

She felt bile rise in her throat. She glanced at the window. Matt was frozen there; he couldn't take his eyes off Lily. She raised her eyebrows in a signal, as if to tell him to get moving and to call for back up.

He stumbled away from the bay style window, distracting M from Lily for a moment. He glared at her, unsure of what he saw. She sat, emotionless, violated, but inwardly pleased that they still had a chance to get out alive. She sat with her hair covering her face. He went to the window and saw the detective strolling down the walk at a leisurely pace, apparently giving up on finding anybody home. But when he passed Lily, she could see the suspicion in his eyes.


	6. Reflections 2

**Reflections**

_--Jeffery--_

I got the call from Garret Macy. I had an anxiety attack.

I felt like my heart was one hundred pounds and it was slowly dropping through my body on the way to my feet and it was taking everything else with it on its way. I was thinking a million thoughts a minute but my brain felt like jelly.

I thought of how she was feeling. What she was doing. What she was being forced to do.

I forced everything from my mind because I thought that that's what she would have wanted me to do. She would want me to be strong. I stood up from my desk, I got in my car and I drove to the scene.

_--Matt--_

When I saw him touching her I couldn't believe my eyes. I wanted to break down the door, gun the freak down, take her into my arms and kiss her. I wanted to tell her that I should never have let her go. I wanted to tell her at that very moment that I still loved her, that I've never stopped loving her.

Instead, I turned from the window, walked down the driveway and called for backup. I did so because that's what she told me to do.

_--Lily--_

I felt dirty. I would never be clean again because he had touched me.

I felt helpless. There was nothing I could do to comfort the child, clinging to his mother.

I felt trapped.


	7. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

Trying his best to ignore the apprehensive glances of the onlookers, Garret pulled up to the scene in one of the morgue's SUV's. "Who's in the house?" he asked, bypassing the yellow warning tape set out by police to prevent neighbors from crossing an invisible safety line.

Matt Seely took charge of the hostage situation immediately after placing the call for backup. He turned to face Garret he said, "Two morgue employees, Mr. Mahesh… uhh—"

"Bug, yeah. Who else?"

His voice faltered slightly, "Ms. Lily Lebowski," he hesitated, as if recovering from shock before adding, "Mrs. Rachel Campbell, wife of the man lying on a steel table in your morgue. I didn't see him, but we're calling around to find where their four year old son, Kurtis Campbell, is. We assume he is in the house as well."

"Any idea on who the hostage taker might be?"

"None yet. We hope that our negotiator can find out that information." Matt looked hopefully to the house.

Since the police began arriving, a coffee table had been erected in front of the large front window to block the view of the living room inside. Every so often, an upstairs curtain fluttered, Matt felt that they had him trapped.

He held a plan of the house in his arms, rolling it out he looked at it again. He viewed the first floor, living room, three known hostages and their placement according to what was in his memory.

Neighbors were pulled toward the excitement. They assembled behind the police tape gossiping together about the house and the people who lived there. "The nerve of them, bringing something like _this_ into _our_ neighborhood," "I see her every morning taking that poor boy to school. You know, I think he's abused," and "Even the police are predicting a bad outcome, look, the morgue is here!" Each time a new neighbor came to investigate, a new twist to the story would be added.

The sun dipped passed the houses and, next to the bright spot light constantly aimed at the house, street lamps were the only source of light.

"Seely!" A male officer called from next to a squad car. He was covering the receiver to a cell phone.

Matt walked confidently over to the officer. The cell phone was handed to him, "Seely here!" He barked. There was a pause before Matt sighed, "I understand. Yes. Goodbye."

Without a word to Garret, Matt began grouping his officers together. Most had high powered rifles pointed at the house. A few communicated on walkie-talkie cell phones. "We have four innocents in the house; it's a positive on the boy!" He announced.

A vehicle pulled in besides Garret's SUV. A disheveled looking man in a suit stumbled from the driver's seat.

"Who is this clown? Get him out of here!" Seely exclaimed as the stranger pushed his glasses up on his face. Two uniformed officers approached him to escort him back to his vehicle. The man began to protest.

"Wait Seely!" Garret announced, "He's Lily's fiancé."

Colour drained from Matt's face but that was the only sign of weakness that he showed. His features stiffened, his harsh voice barked new orders to the uniforms, and he turned and began conversing with another head officer.


End file.
